Hi guys, for next season I'm forced to play the league games with a different team. I have no worries about XD but the MD will be a problem. I play over the years with right handers. I had no issues and problems with them. Now my new partner is a lefty. Over the years I avoided to play with lefties. Normally we made the arrangement that the player with the better backhand took the shuttle in the middle. Have you and experiences and tips for such a combo?
I'm a lefty! For shots in the middle, it will only take a while to see who's better in taking the mid court area shots. Reaction times between players will differ just by a bit, but sufficient to decide who shall take that certain shot. So it's not a big issue. Cheers.
Whether I'm playing with my right hand or left hand I do the same thing. I get my racket ready to take the shot, even if it's on my backhand. In doubles, even side by side, you should be slightly staggered. If you're further back, be ready to catch the shuttle if your partner misses.
Video analyze the choice of shots from left/righthand team ups like Zhang nan/Fu haifeng or Boe/ Mogensen, Cai Yun/Fu Haifeng .... Especially in the situations when both can take the shot. Tell you partner to analyses the same match, and be sure he chooses the other player (Boe?) than you (Mogensen?). Know your partner, is he better with his backhand or forehand in the front etc. ... So place your shots that the returns will come more likely to the strong side of both you and him (It can be the whole court if you are placing your self right and for example both are better with their fore hands) So there is an extra dimension in your game when used right it is advantage if used wrong its an disadvantage to a normal pairing.
Past season I had to switch between a left- and a right-handed MD partner. From my experience, there is only one thing to do for you and your new lefty partner: Practise as many games as possible with as many different opponents as possible before the new season starts! Each time you encounter an issue regarding movement on court or who should take the critical "middle shuttles" during these practise games, talk them through with your partner right after the rally. After several games, it will feel more and more like normal and the extra-thinking during rallies will disappear. It simply needs time and practise to get in-sync with each new partner. Switching from right- to a left-handed one might just be a little bit more demanding. And let´s not forget one important thing. It also depends to a high degree on the skills and experience of your new lefty partner. In case he already has some experience in a right/left MD then this would be a huge advantage of course and might speed up the adjustment significantly. And yes, I would also recommend not to use the pride of your racket collection for the first training games...
Am I the only one that doesn't care whether my partner is left handed or right handed? It doesn't change anything about who goes for what shot - whoever is closest to the shot takes the shot, or whoever the shuttle is coming to takes the shot. Notice I didn't say anything about right handed or left handed in what I just said. Playing with a new partner is always challenging - what are their strengths and weaknesses? Can you use your strengths to help with their weaknesses and vice versa? For anyone who gets confused about what hand their partner uses: you are just making excuses.
I tend to agree but you should think about where to play your attacking shots. From the forehand side you want to attack more towards the middle of the court and from the backhand side your shots should go more towards the straight sidelines. This way your partner can intercept with his forehand most of the time.
I am not sure I agree with you. A good net player will be able to cover the net using his forehand, or backhand or round the head. Regardless of whether they are right handed or left handed. I am going to play my attacking shots based on my partners strengths weaknesses and those of my opponents. I am not going to guess what their strengths or weaknesses are based on which hand they play with. So, if my partner is a not able to cover the net properly, then I may adjust my shots accordingly. However, if they are really good at the net, it doesn't matter so much - I can focus on my opponents weaknesses rather than worry about our sides weaknesses. Thats the way I see it. Of course you may be correct: for most players you may assume the forehand is the strength. But personally I think that being able to cover the net is a skill that some players have and some players don't, and its based on racket preparation and court positioning and reading the game - not which hand they play with.
If your opponent blocks the shuttle I agree with you. One should be able to cover the net regardless of which side the shuttle is. But if they try to turn the attack playing a drive defense or a flat and fast lift it is way easier to cover is with your forehand. You can cover much more space with your forehand which makes the interception that much easier. Also when rotating back the former net player can use his forehand to keep attacking. Doing this from your backhand side can be awkward sometimes. Oh and by the way I don't want to say this is the way to go for everyone. It is just how I feel most comfortable.
Fair answer. I am not sure I agree... but if it works for you and the people you play with then thats good, and it may work for others too! I disagree about it being easier to intercept on the forehand side - I think its equally easy to cover both directions - but maybe I am wrong. Personally, I think of it in terms of strengths and weaknesses, which can be more generally split between the left side and the right side of the court, the front of the court and the back of the court etc. But thats what works for me!
As Matt says, handedness doesn't matter as much as both players having a good understanding of tactics/strategies and court awareness. Or course, can be said of their opponents too... if they have good tactics/strategies and court awareness, then they will concentrate on placement to areas that are difficult to get for both you and your leftie partner...
These are my tips. 1. Discuss things that might be awkward before and after the game (general) 2. Make an agreement on who takes the shuttle in the middle for high and low shuttles, who is on the front and back. This is because normally with two righties, the one with the forehand will take the high ones and the one with backhand will take the low ones in the middle. So discuss it, otherwise you'll have many clashes or just let the shuttle completely because both thought the partner will take it. 3. Court covering, court awareness... just try to keep your distance from your partner. If you are on the left(which means your partner is on the right) at defence left right position, stay further than you usually do because both forehands are in the middle, and do the opposite when you are on the right (which means the lefty is on the left), be more closer. It's amazing since I've travelled across teh java sea here, you not only get to partner a lefty but also have a match against a lefty righty combination.
Thanks for all posts. I will proof our new partnership in an upcoming tournament. In the past we made the agreement that he plays like a righty. That was easy for me, because I didn't changed anything. IMO these isn't a case if we are attacking. The problem isn't when we were in a defence situation and the shuttle is in the middle and we can both use our forehand. A short yell is enough. The problem is, when we are both in the backhand situation for the middle and the shuttle is lifted exactly in the middle of the backcourt. I'm practising my backhand smash, but this shot isn't a hard shot to get points and gain anything. His backhandclear is better than mine, but his variation in shots isn't as good as mine. I think we should both practise next training the around the head shots with more confident, because I always forget that I play with a lefty. It's a mental thing.
i'm a lefty myself and my best partner to date is a righty. we've only clash rackets at most probably 3 times in the last 8 years. we've played competitively in local tournaments, nothing to brag about, but it was intense mentally. somehow whenever we clash our rackets, it's toward the same direction at about the same speed. never broke a racket. that said, i think the most important thing to work on is your rotation. there were still shots targetted right between the both of us when we have our backhands between us, but seldom do we clash rackets or let it go thru us. awareness of your partner is key. doubles is known to be a reaction game and sometimes you need to react to how your partner move as well. there's been times when he rushed to save a shot because he saw i was reacting very slowly, or i rush back to chase after a shot behind him because he had just lunged hard for the previous shot. so i say, watch your partner and react. hope this helps
